Fortune has decided that now is a good time to take a look back at some of the most iconic designs over the course of our “modern times”.
To get there, the publication reached 100 designs that it believes fits that bill. It includes a variety of companies over the years, dating back decades in some cases. But, of course, our focus today is on Apple and how it ranks in Fortune‘s list. The results are positive, to say the least, with eight different products from the company ending up in its ranks. The iPhone? Well, it topped the charts.
In 2019, to recognize the 60-year anniversary of the original list, Fortune again partnered with the IIT Institute of Design (ID), now under the deanship of Denis Weil, to re-create the survey. Following Doblin’s methodology as closely as possible—with some sensible modern tweaks—ID polled educators, influencers, freelance designers, and corporate design teams on the creations they consider truly great. After more than a year of planning, surveying, and consolidation, we present to you the 100 iconic designs that rose to the top.
The goal with the list is to promote products that have made huge changes in modern times. In some cases it’s just about style, but in many others it’s about the product that made people’s lives better in some way or another. With that in mind, it probably shouldn’t be a surprise that Apple’s original iPhone, which launched way back in 2007, took the number one spot on the list.
Here’s how Fortune describes the device:
An iPod, a phone, an Internet communicator” was how the late Steve Jobs announced the ‌iPhone‌ to the world in 2007. At the time it was an impressive claim. Now it seems like a massive understatement for a device that changed how we live. Analysts were initially skeptical that Apple could succeed selling a premium phone for $499 in a market in which most devices were subsidized or given away by carriers. But by relentlessly pushing the envelope of hardware and software design, adding a professional-grade camera, and creating an ecosystem of apps and services, Apple has sold more than 2 billion iPhones–and in the process has become the most valuable company in the world.
Apple ended up taking the number two spot, as well, thanks to the 1984 Macintosh. Fortune says the machine was responsible for ultimately defining the personal computer revolution, effectively catapulting us to today’s machines.
It’s not just about hardware, either. Apple Pay, Apple’s mobile payment option, made the list at number 46. Meanwhile, Apple’s iPod from 2001 came in 10th, while 2006 MacBook Pro sits at 14, the App Store in 22nd place, and iOS itself took 29th on the list.
The full list is definitely worth checking out. And, after you do, I’m curious to know which products you think should’ve made the list but didn’t. Especially when it comes to Apple. Think Fortune missed anything?